Luggy

Paul Sturrock

Description

Paul Sturrock is widely admired as a manager, having turned around football clubs' fortunes both in England and his native Scotland. As a player he represented his beloved Dundee United and Scotland, and later managed the Tangerines after leading St Johnstone into the SPL. Moving south, he led Plymouth Argyle from bottom place in the basement division to the Championship within four seasons. Sturrock's uncompromising managerial style didn't fit with Southampton's players or owners; however Saints' loss was Sheffield Wednesday's gain, and promotion was again won to the Championship against all odds. Having stabilised Swindon Town and taken Southend United to a Wembley play-off final, he returned to Plymouth for a sad swansong dominated by the club entering administration and Sturrock's own revelation that he was suffering from Parkinson's disease. Paul's warts-and-all autobiography will both touch and inspire fans at all his clubs, and supporters of the beautiful game everywhere.

Sujets

• Escocia
• Scotland

Informations

• Publié par: Pitch Publishing Ltd
• Date de parution: 16 septembre 2015
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781785311116
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

First published by Pitch Publishing, 2015
Pitch Publishing
A2 Yeoman Gate
Yeoman Way
Durrington
BN13 3QZ
www.pitchpublishing.co.uk
Paul Sturrock with Bill Richards, 2015
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the Publisher.
A CIP catalogue record is available for this book from the British Library
Print ISBN 978-1-78531-045-4
eBook ISBN: 978-1-78531-111-6
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Contents
Walter Smith OBE - former Scotland, Rangers and Everton manager
Harry Redknapp Tribute
Introduction
Luggy
Ear We Go
The Early Years
The Mighty Jim
The Rise And Rise Of Dundee United
Shooting Star
From Player To Manager
Back At Dundee United
Plymouth Argyle - South Of The Border Down Devonshire Way
Breathing New Life Into The Jaded Pilgrims
Going To The Show
Sheffield Wednesday
Soaring With Swindon
Plymouth Argyle - The Second Time Around
Chairman Has His Say
Southend United 2010/13
Tribute To Andy King
My Three Trusty Lieutenants
Parkinson s
Photographs
Walter Smith OBE - former Scotland, Rangers and Everton manager
I HAVE known Paul Sturrock from when he came in as a rookie wannabe footballer at Dundee United in the 1970s and have watched his playing and managerial career flourish ever since.
So, it is a genuine pleasure to be asked to contribute to his life story which has seen Paul win trophies and league titles with Dundee United, caps for Scotland and promotions as a manager both north and south of the border.
It is no surprise to me and no accident either that Paul has earned the reputation as one of the most successful managers and coaches outside of the Premier League in England. I remember Paul or Luggy as he became better known, as a very keen youth player, one of several that United s manager Jim McLean had brought to Tannadice.
It was obvious that Paul had the drive and ambition to become a first-team player, and his willingness to learn and improve was evident from the word go.
That he has achieved so much in the game is a testament to his work ethic and attention to detail and what he was being taught and told.
Paul is a football man through and through, and the discipline and professionalism was learnt early on at Dundee United under Jim McLean. But it is to Paul s credit that he was willing to go that extra yard.
It is fair to say that Paul was probably not the finished article when he burst into the first team, but through hard work and extra training with the coaches at Tannadice, he very quickly became an outstanding striker and established himself in an excellent Dundee United squad.
Paul had a great attitude and was a model pupil, which as any coach will tell you, is rewarding both for player and coach.
As a player, Paul clearly relished a challenge and worked his socks off with myself and John Duncan in extra training and was straining at the leash to bring his left foot more into play.
He realised that we were working with him in extra training not for the good of our own health, but to help add another dimension to his forward play, which we achieved.
Although Paul was personally ambitious to turn himself into a better player, he was also extremely loyal to Dundee United, despite the interest of several bigger clubs, both in Scotland and in England.
He has said on record that he could not have been happier anywhere else, than at Tannadice, where he stayed for 16 years as a player and five years as a coach and latterly as manager.
One-club footballers are a rarity, particularly, when as an outstanding striker which Paul was, he could have made more money elsewhere.
But then, he was achieving so much at Dundee United at the time winning League Cups and championships and reaching European finals, so it suited Paul, who was a huge part and presence of the team s success. That applied to most of the United squad where individual talent, of which Paul was one, turned the side into an effective unit, as their record at that time clearly proves.
Paul, perhaps, was unlucky to be playing at a time when Scotland already had two very good strikers, in Kenny Dalglish and Steve Archibald. Otherwise he would have won more caps than he did.
That would be a regret to anybody, to say you re a better player than Kenny Dalglish who was one of the best players anywhere, never mind Scotland.
But Paul never gave up trying and I think it was that attitude which ensured he was always involved in the Scotland scene. He was also a very good character to have around the first team.
Through all the years I ve known him, particularly early on as a young striker, I can honestly say that no-one worked harder to rise to a higher level as a player.
He also brought that same level of intensity to his coaching and later managerial career.
Paul was always working hard in coaching even in his early to mid-twenties and he made no secret of the fact that he wanted to get into management once his footballing days were over.
Paul s work ethic ensured that he would give it a good go, and, in fact, he has achieved a lot more than that as a coach and manager.
He worked really hard to achieve that level of ability as a player and did not let his own standards drop, which is precisely what he did as a coach and manager.
He accepts everything as a challenge and wherever he has managed and coached, no matter what the situation he finds himself in.
There s no doubt in my mind that Paul Sturrock is an outstanding manager in what is a difficult environment to be successful.
Looking back on my years at Dundee United, it was a very good time to be there and people like Paul made it all the more enjoyable and memorable.
Harry Redknapp Tribute
I VE KNOWN Paul for many years now, mainly through Jocky Scott and Gordon Wallace and have followed his career ever since. Obviously I knew him as an outstanding player with Scotland and Dundee United.
In his playing career Paul was unlucky that Kenny Dalglish was around otherwise he would have won an awful lot more Scotland caps than he did.
He played in a really good team up in Scotland and was a terrific footballer but no player would displace Kenny Dalglish in his prime.
As a manager, I ve also watched his career blossom and I like the way his teams play the game.
We were rival managers when Paul was at Southampton and I was with Portsmouth for that short spell.
Our two sides played against each other down at St Mary s and we got to know each other again then.
If I was able to help Paul out with a loan player then I would and I did.
Paul s main attribute as a coach is first and foremost that he is a football man and knows the game.
He s been brought up around good coaches and managers up in Scotland and he has a fantastic understanding of the game.
There is no magic formula to the game - it s about good players and getting the best out of them.
He prepares his teams well and gets to know the strengths and weaknesses of his players and strives to get the best out of them.
And that is something Paul does well as his success rate of winning championships with his various clubs shows.
When you consider that Paul is having two things to manage in his career - his illness and football teams - I think that shows his courage and also his deep love of the game.
Naturally, I wish Paul every success at Yeovil Town and I will keep in touch with him and I ll go down to watch a game there, I ll enjoy that.
Introduction
I AM writing this book as a true account of my life - to date - in the game that I love, the characters I have met along the way who have inspired, influenced and shaped my career in football and also to put the record straight on a few issues.
I include the highs and lows of a career in football that spans over 40 years since, some great successes as a player with Dundee United and Scotland, and later as a promotion-winning manager both north and south of the border.
Inevitably, a few of my observations on events over the years will no doubt upset a few readers, but, hopefully, what follows will enlighten and entertain the most important players in the game - the fans.
I was minded to put pen to paper before now but was prompted by the number of people, whether supporters at one of my former clubs or just casual inquiries asking what are you up to now, Luggy, isn t it time you either got back into management or write your life story .
Well, as the phrase goes be careful what you wish for as I won t be leaving anything out - it s been quite a journey for a wee Scot who didn t know whether he would be able to make a living from the game, but always knew he wanted to try.
I am also in a good place right now, both personally and geographically, and that is thanks to the loving relationship I have with my partner of several years, Andrea.
We live together in a small village in south-east Cornwall, Menheniot, where Andrea and myself are leading the good life, fruit and vegetable growing and keeping horses in our stables.
It is our rock-solid relationship and the terrific community life in the village which keeps me anchored in the West Country and I cannot imagine living anywhere else.
This is the real deal.
But it s time to turn from the present and leaf through my back pages, so here goes.
Luggy
F OOTBALL has been my life pretty much since I was old enough to walk and beneath the now stockier and older version I m still the same skinny kid who practised on his own for hours kicki